HPE EdgeConnect Microbranch

Main articles:

• IT Service Management (ITSM)
• SD-WAN (Software Defined) the Program defined WAN network
• Remote Operations Integration Services

2022: Announcement EdgeConnect Microbranch

On February 4, 2022, Hewlett Packard Enterprise introduced EdgeConnect Microbranch, a network solution for home and small offices with hybrid desktop support, ensuring the secure provision of all traditional office network services to remote employees through a single Wi-Fi access point, without the need for additional agents, equipment or gateway.

EdgeConnect Microbranch

According to the company, using the Microbranch EdgeConnect, IT departments can provide employees with a stable level of service regardless of their location. This solution provides this capability by providing remote workers with a complete set of enterprise network services, faster troubleshooting, and protection by incorporating a home/small office into the Zero Trust and Secure Access Services Edge (SASE) corporate security loop.

EdgeConnect Microbranch, being part of the Aruba ESP (Edge Services Platform) platform, includes access points and an updated SD-WAN service package.

SD-WAN software-defined WAN technology is used in large offices and campuses. When the hybrid style of operation becomes the norm, Aruba SD-WAN's automated policy-based traffic management and cloud security tools are especially in demand in home and small remote offices to provide secure support for remote employees. IDC estimates that 70% of G2000 organizations plan to implement remote or hybrid work models while rethinking workflows.

The key to successfully implementing flexible remote work scenarios is the ability of companies to give their employees at home exactly the same access to tools, applications, and functions as in the office. The EdgeConnect Microbranch solution implements this capability by adding SD-WAN and SASE services to Aruba remote access point authentication, management, and analytics connectivity, without the need to install additional hardware or software agents into existing devices. The lack of additional equipment is an important factor for home and small offices without IT specialists - such as field outlets, kiosks or mobile health centers.

EdgeConnect Microbranch services address the main challenges of remote operation - providing the required performance for latency-sensitive applications (such as unified communications and collaboration systems), the right level of security, and efficient operation in high-density network devices that require bandwidth.

Microbranch EdgeConnect services, for example, policy-based routing (which allows the IT department to optimize the delivery of application traffic to its destination) complement existing services like Air Slice, which dynamically allocates radio resources of the access point to specific applications. For example, the video quality of conference applications can be optimized by increasing the priority of their traffic over entertainment video. In addition, video conferencing traffic can be directed directly to a trusted SaaS platform, bypassing excessive transmission to the data center for verification.

EdgeConnect Microbranch provides organizations with a scalable method of providing remote work and building a home in exactly the same working conditions as in the office. And, although some believe that the only network service that can be provided to the access point/home office router is security (and even this will require additional equipment), Microbranch EdgeConnect demonstrates that with the skillful use of the cloud approach, all critical network services can be provided to the home office through the access point. says Larry Lunetta, Vice President, Marketing, Aruba Solutions Portfolio, Hewlett Packard Enterprise

By expanding home remote access points with key SD-WAN features, EdgeConnect Microbranch is the right solution for hybrid work scenarios such as contact centers, telemedicine, and IT management, where uptime and security are critical. EdgeConnect Microbranch is a solution that replaces traditional methods of building home/small offices, which use separate consumer-class devices to organize remote work, the functionality and management of which are limited, and additional equipment is required to provide SD-WAN and SASE services.

SD-WAN capabilities - Local gateway will no longer be needed:

• Policy-based routing - Application performance and security are ensured by automated enforcement of rules that enforce service-level agreements Service Level Agreement(,) SLA for specific applications, websites, or user types.
• Orchestrating tunnels and routes - Optimize network performance by creating on-demand VPN tunnels and automatically redirecting traffic along a network path.
• SASE Integration - Provides secure connectivity to cloud security services such as Zscaler directly through the AP, with Aruba Central providing tunnel orchestration and unified configuration management.
• Changed WAN transparency - Optimizes troubleshooting and user experience by providing near-real-time information about WAN availability, utilization, and bandwidth. This was made possible by the timely detection of delays, jitter and other access problems that negatively affect the infrastructure - Internetprovider which are traditionally hidden from IT commands.

These features are based on the existing capabilities of Aruba's remote access solutions, including:

• Traffic prioritization - Allocates a radio resource to applications and dynamically changes it at the beginning or end of an application session.
• Scalability - Support contactless deployment and consolidated management of tens of thousands of remote desktops with Aruba Central and ArubaOS 10 cloud services.
• Optimized uptime and reliability: Provide back-up connection Mobile Internet LTE to USB the -interface in case of a break in the home/small office of stationary communication with the ISP.

As remote operations continue to grow, IT is facing a growing number of challenges, such as ensuring that all employees, regardless of location, have transparent, manageable access to business-critical applications and data. The ability to apply Zero Trust and SASE security practices at home and remote offices will play an important role in enterprise hybrid workplace initiatives. noted Chris DePui, technology analyst at 650 Group

The Aruba EdgeConnect Microbranch solution is already available to members of the early access program, and in March 2022 it will become public for any access point managed by ArubaOS 10 with a Foundation AP License (including certified access points that customers already own and manage in Aruba Central). Aruba Central Foundation licenses are available at $145 per access point. The cost of the access point varies depending on the model and starts at $575 for the Aruba 303H series.